


Lavender Tea

by MagicalMageHimiko



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Crying, Emotional Comfort, F/M, Kisses, Marianne needs a hug, Perfect Tea Time, Promises, Tea, so i made my own food, these two need more fics
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-07
Updated: 2020-07-07
Packaged: 2021-03-04 18:48:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,737
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25121137
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MagicalMageHimiko/pseuds/MagicalMageHimiko
Summary: “Y-you held onto this all this time?” His hands were shaking now, tears streaming from his eyes like raindrops. Those lavender eyes stared at her once again, face full of disbelief. “This… My ring prevented you from… You didn’t discard it?”Or: Marianne made a promise to Lorenz back in their Academy Days. Now reunited 5 years later, she proves to him that she kept it.The whole time.
Relationships: Marianne von Edmund/Lorenz Hellman Gloucester
Comments: 8
Kudos: 67





	Lavender Tea

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first time writing a fanfic in about a year, it's been way too long! I hope you all enjoy :)

Tea time with Lorenz was always nice.

It had started back at the academy. Barely a week after she had first met him, he had offered her invitations to tea. These attempts were nearly always met with a polite refusion, or on a bad day, she would run away without even acknowledging his request.

But sometimes, rarely, she would agree. She would spend time in the monastery gardens with him, listening to him talk enthusiastically about his obligations as a noble, and blush when he showered her with compliments at the slightest hint of a smile.

They continued throughout the school year, getting a little more frequent as time went on, with Marianne getting a little more confidence each time she started a conversation of her own about horses, or a beautiful bird she had seen that morning. She and Lorenz had built up a companionship of sorts, he was someone she could feel safe with, and he wouldn’t pester her with questions about her crest.

She always appreciated that part of him.

There was one time, she remembered, barely a week before Edelgard’s army was due to arrive at the Monastery’s gates, that she and Lorenz shared one last tea break in his room. But this time, it was at Marianne’s request. She remembered thinking that, if she was going to die in that battle, then she would like to spend her final days near the one person she felt close to a friend. Perhaps he was a friend, even then.

But that day, he had been paled with worry over House Gloucester’s territorial matters, and what the Empire was planning to do. As the heir of a house with such unfortunate placement, it was as expected. Her adoptive father had remarked that statement quite a bit, and it echoed in her ears.

And yet, he still found time to answer her request, to spend hours in her company. Even now, she was sure that she had dreamt the whole thing. But near the end of the quiet peace-time, when they had to separate for their preparation tasks, he had stopped her when she was about to stand up. Offered her a ring. 

“This isn’t what it implies, I swear it. But I feel that I should give this to you anyway. Think of it as a…good luck charm of sorts. If I am forced to take a separate path from yours, please keep this on your person. It would do me well to think that one person was always thinking about me, Lorenz Hellman Gloucester while I did my duty.” 

She couldn’t believe the words out of his mouth. Why would he give it to her of all people? Surely there was plenty of people that would have come up first in his mind. Such an important request, and he asked someone as incapable of her to fulfill it?

But then he had added one last statement to his request. Something that made Marianne, for just a moment, forget her self-doubts. 

“Especially if that someone is the most important person in the world to me”.

Since then, she had always kept the ring around her neck, hung by a silver chain Hilda gave her once-upon-a-time. When she was forced to return to Edmund territory, to a fractured alliance barely kept together at the seams, she always had it with her.

During heated council meetings which she was forced to attend, during fighting when Empire assassins attempted to break the alliance even more. During horseback while she traveled the alliance, in spurts of quiet peaceful days in never-ending warfare. On those days, she would often ride past Gloucester territory, in the hopes of randomly bumping into Lorenz doing the same thing.

It never happened.

“Marianne, are you all right? You’ve been out of sorts since you sat down. Do you need fresh air?”

She blinked once to the sound of Lorenz’s words, sat opposite her in his room at the Monastery. A cup of lavender tea in her hands, she must have held it without taking a sip for some time now. She placed it back onto the table instead, cringing at how warm her hands were now.

“Y-yes. I’m sorry, I was just… lost in thought for a moment” She replied, fingers fumbling with her sleeves, avoiding eye-contact with him. 

The reunion three days ago. It had been the first time she had seen Lorenz for five years. His hair had grown, and he looked more tired, more stressed than she ever remembered. But the moment his eyes laid on hers, His smile completely erased all of that from his features. To think that she had that effect- No, she was getting too ahead of herself. He was most likely just pleased to be back with his classmates, and the sight of one of them in particular just made him smile fondly. It could have been anyone.

But then why, when they had barely any time to even settle in at the monastery, had he sent her an invitation for tea? As if no time had passed at all? As if 5 years of silence, of nothing but whispers and hushed reports she had heard at roundtable conferences, had never happened. 

“… Lorenz, may I ask you something? Please.” She stated the question simply, without any stutters. She had been getting better, her adoptive father had told her himself. 

He gave her a quizzical look, eyebrows raised inquisitively. He sat his own cup back onto the table while he spoke. “Of course, you may feel free to ask me anything you wish Marianne”

Always so polite with her. Since when had she earned the right to speak with someone so kind, so honest, so…noble. It still felt uneasy.

“Why have you invited me here?” She began carefully, not wanting to sound rude in the presence of someone who meant so much to her, even after all these years. “Lavender tea is not easy to come by, especially near the church. I… You could have asked anyone here to join you. Why waste something so-so precious on someone like me?” 

Lorenz’s face shifted into one of shock, mouth falling open. “Wh- Someone like you? Marianne, forgive my improper speak, but you must be blind!”

She lifted her head up from gazing at her sleeves, but she didn’t say anything, just stared at the window behind Lorenz, still avoiding his gaze.

“Marianne. Listen to these words, please. I brought this Lavender tea from House Gloucester’s supplies for the sole intention of sharing tea with you. Here. Now.” 

She did meet his gaze then, but it was her face that changed into one of shock. Actually, it was probably more confusion more than anything. She didn’t know, or care. She’d never been one for caring about her facial expression.

“You-You brought Lavender tea from House Gloucester’s personal supplies, t-to share with…me?” She shook her head after repeating the statement, as if it would help her understand. It didn’t. 

“I don’t understand Lorenz, it’s been five years. Five years and I have not even seen your face. Heard your voice. And you even less for me, why on earth would you… would you do something like that?”

Lorenz took a sip of the tea before he answered, eyes closing while he savored the taste. He spoke again after he had finished. “Marianne, I can assure you. Every waking moment I was in Gloucester territory, under the Empire’s will, taking care of business my father didn’t seem necessary to do himself, I was worried about you”

He stared at her so intensely with those words, she had no choice but to look into those eyes of his. Eyes the shade not unlike the lavender in the tea they were drinking. 

“You looked so distant during our last few days at the Officers Academy, a part of me was thinking that you would do something… something you shouldn’t. Perhaps it is out of line, even rude for me to assume this, but at times, I believed that you wished for the Goddess to take you up to the heavens with her.” 

He was the one who looked away then, expression an empty smirk as he glanced at the table-cloth “I even thought, when you where called away so suddenly, that I would never see you again. I was a fool, I should have had more confidence in you, I know that now. And yet…”

He took a deep breath before he continued, his posture slumping a little more, a small break of his usual noble out layer. 

“And yet, when I thought about how much pressure that must have – That *has* been thrust upon your shoulders, dealing with the conflict of war and the disagreements of the entire roundtable, especially with you being a member of House Edmund, a new house, I…” He cleared his throat, as if there was something stuck there that wouldn’t budge. “I thought too little of you, thought that you would give in to such depressing thoughts.” He frowned then, looking away from her completely as if disgusted with himself.

This wouldn’t do. 

This wouldn’t do at all! How could he be so-so right and wrong at the same time? She fought inside her head for the right words to come out, frustrated with her own failures. Failure at what, she wasn’t sure, but she had to have done something. The sting of wet tears began to be felt at the edges of her eyes, but she spoke up despite them, paying them no mind.

“Lorenz, You…” Her hands started shaking, and she held onto her teacup to occupy them. “You shouldn’t be disappointed in yourself! You-Your gut instinct was right. I wouldn’t have been strong enough – not in the slightest”

His gaze shifted back to her then, face yet again one of shock and confusion, but she didn’t allow him to interrupt.

“Had it been another time, another place, I would have done exactly what you propositioned. I was…am a selfish being, who has spent most of her life wanting the goddess to take me, to save me from my-“ She cut herself off there. She couldn’t reveal that. Not yet. She shook her head yet again.

“Do you know what stopped me from doing that Lorenz? Do you know why I stopped praying for my own selfish reasons, and instead for the protection of.. of the others?” 

She stared at him then, gaze so intense she didn’t even think herself capable of it. He looked like he wanted to say something, but at the same time wanted her to continue speaking. His face a mixture of emotions, not able to decide on one that suited best. Eventually, he straightened up and asked.

“What?”

She fiddled with her clothes for a moment, searching around her neck for the one thing she hadn’t let go off since it was put in her possession. As soon as she felt the chain, she reached around to carefully undo the clasp, and held the item gently in her palms as she dropped them to the table, so that he could clearly see what was there.

In her palms, in plain sight, was a beautiful sapphire ring. The gemstone gleaming in the candlelight of the room, the ring supported by a rusted, but still slightly silver chain. The signs of well use showed well on it, but the ring itself was untouched. She had taken a great deal of care to not accidentally break it in one of her usual clumsy moments.  
One, two moments passed as Lorenz stared at the ring.

The ring he himself had given her a lifetime ago. After a third, he reached forward and took her hands into his own, thumbs rubbing over her palms, but holding them so gently as if she might break if he held her too firm.

“Y-you held onto this all this time?” His hands were shaking now, tears streaming from his eyes like raindrops. Those lavender eyes stared at her once again, face full of disbelief. “This… My ring prevented you from… You didn’t discard it?”

She smiled a little then, cheeks turning pink as she gazed into his eyes. “I’ve kept it all this time, wearing it every day.” She averted her gaze yet again as she continued her confession. “You asked something of me. Something that only I could do. If I gave up without fulfilling my request, I-I would be admitting that I am a failure. A-and I know that word often suits me in most cases, but I couldn’t bear the thought of letting you down.” 

She reached her hand up to his cheek, stroking away the tears that had fallen. His pink cheeks soft, but the tear streaks didn’t seem to take away his beauty in even the slightest.

Those where the last thoughts that went through her head before she felt a hand on her own cheek, so gentle and soft.

A moment later, and Lorenz leaned over the table, pressing his lips to hers.

She stiffened for all of a second, before reciprocating with the same amount of gentle force. Lorenz pulled away quickly, apologies bursting from his mouth.

“I-I’m sorry I shouldn’t have-“ She chased after him, silencing his words with her own mouth. And they stayed like that, moving back and forth between them, for what felt like hours. Tea long since gone cold. A waste probably, and yet Marianne couldn’t find it in her to care. 

She pulled away eventually, breathing heavily, Lorenz doing much the same, his cheeks the colour of roses he wore so often. She guessed her own mirrored his.

“Lorenz, you saved my life…” She could feel her own tears making a path across her features now. “And all the time, every day, I think about this ring. How you gave it to me. I used to- I used to ride up to Gloucester Territory as often as I could, because I thought… b-because maybe I would see you. But I never did Lorenz, I never did!” 

Her vision blurred with tears, and she broke down. Sobbing loudly, not caring for her appearance. Usually, she would have run away by now, but instead, she felt warm, strong arms wrap around her. Lorenz had moved from his seat to next to where she was sat. He held her close, and she grabbed onto his shirt as she cried. Nobody had ever hugged her when she cried, not since her parents when she was just a little girl. 

She wasn’t sure if that made the sobbing worse, but for the first time in 5 years, no more than that, since her father disappeared, she felt safe. Wanted.  
Lorenz kept silent as he hugged her, one hand gently stroking her back, soothing her. After some time had passed, her tears had disappeared, and Lorenz released his arms to cup her face again.

“Marianne. I cannot explain to you enough how much I wish to apologize for my behavior these past five years. I would not have left you in silence if I could help it, I guarantee that of you.” He ran a thumb absentmindedly over her lips. “The Empire has had House Gloucester in a vice grip since the fall of Garreg Mach, we have had to put every possible precaution in place to avoid both an invasion, and shattering the neutral state of the Alliance, believe me Marianne, if I was able to converse with House Edmund at any point, you can rest assured that I would have never broken contact with you in the first place.”

Marianne didn’t really know how to respond to that. Of course, she had already known that it would be something amongst those lines. And yet, still, a part of her had always assumed that the one person who enjoyed her company had abandoned her. Just like everyone else she had ever come close with. 

She decided instead to just kiss him, bringing their mouths together once again, because even though she wasn’t the best speaker, even though she couldn’t even write well enough to express her emotions, she knew that Lorenz understood her. He always had. He was funny like that.

And as they enjoyed their company together, cold tea forgotten and sapphire ring gleaming even still, the war had never felt so small and insignificant.

**Author's Note:**

> There isn't nearly enough Marianne/Lorenz content on here, hopefully i can inspire people to fill up the tag :)
> 
> Thank you for reading! These two are so adorable and I love their support conversations, so of course I had to write a fic for them (probably the first of many). 
> 
> Feel free to follow me on Twitter   
> [here!](https://twitter.com/Dakota_Cardie/)


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